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Austin to rename Confederate roads after black leaders

The Austin City Council voted on Friday to take the names of Confederate leaders off two roads in the Texas capital.

The Associated Press reported that one road named for Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee will be renamed after Azie Taylor Morton, the first African-American U.S. treasurer.

Another road, Jeff Davis Avenue, named for the president of the Confederacy, will be renamed after William Holland, an African-American man who served as a Texas state legislator and a commissioner in Travis County, one of the counties encompassing Austin.

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The renaming efforts come amid a national debate over remaining markers of the Confederacy and whether Confederate leaders should be memorialized in public works.

According to the AP, most Austin residents who filled out surveys regarding the name changes were opposed to doing so. But at the city hall meeting, most speakers favored the change.